Get Rid Of Your Muffin Top, Chub Rub & Banana Roll

Every so often a patient comes into the office with a complaint using an unusual term to describe a troubling area of localized fat. When this occurs you have to admit that you are “not in the know” by being blunt and inquire as to what they are talking about.

Many of us would rather pretend we understand this new lingo which seems to have invaded our culture. However, in the practice of medicine certain things remain constant but they these constants are starting to change or evolve to fit our politically correct society.

Several weeks ago tabloid magazines were filled with photographs of actress Kirsty Alley’s CANKLES. Well, if you have never heard this term before you may be baffled.

The cankle is a term designed to describe a fat-calf ankle, where there is no visual distinction between the calf and the ankle. When this term is used it is usually derogatory.

Two weeks ago a patient asked if Mesotherapy can treat her CHUB RUB. This caught me off guard as I had never heard this term before. I reluctantly broke down and admitted I did not know what she was talking about.

She laughed and said, “it’s the fat between my inner thighs” She went on to say all her friends use this term to describe fat inner thighs which rub together. This one was a shocker, but now I am in the know.

The BANANA ROLL is an interesting term. It took me some time to come to terms with this one. I am still embarrassed to tell patients I can fix their banana roll.

The banana roll is the fat immediately beneath the buttocks which looks like a banana. This area of fat is very difficult to get rid off with diet and exercise. It is very common after liposuction.

MUFFIN TOPS is used quite commonly to describe the love handles or the visible fat above the waist line when wearing low cut jeans. This is another term I learned from a patient.

My all-time favorite term is BAT WINGS. Very few people will know this term. Several of my patients in the 50’s age range refer to this unwanted fat on the underside of their arms as bat wings. The first time I heard this descriptive term I really had to keep a serious face, frankly, I wanted to crack up laughing. I was just trying to imagine the patient outstretched arms flapping.

Although the above terms are not medical or standard anatomical terms they certainly reflect the current trend to be politically correct. Being politically correct in its simplest form is intended to soften the impact of a traditional term and in the process we may create a new term to describe a previously non-described problem, such as cankles, chub rub, banana roll and bat wings.

So in essence, these are really modern words to describe unwanted fat which produces a cosmetic problem.

Pioneering the use of Mesotherapy in the U.S. to combat cellulite, Dr. Lionel Bissoon has helped thousands of women experience cellulite-free legs and buttocks. Complete with case studies, before-and-after photos and straightforward advice, his new book, The Cellulite Cure, offers hope to cottage cheese thighs everywhere. For more information, go to www.cellulite.md

July 7, 2008

Is Sienne Miller Crazy or Honest?

If you Google search "Sienna Miller" and "diet", you'll find dozens of links to pages about the star's Vodka Diet.

According to one site, "Instead of having a glass of wine with her meal, [Miller] had a shot of vodka and it worked wonders. Not only did the liquor help her lose the pounds, but it also gave her that ghastly appearance that she wanted her character [in the film 'Factory Girl'] to have."

Okay, that doesn't sound so much as a crash diet as it does a calorie-swap. But the phrase "Vodka Diet" is really eye catching, isn't it?



Not that the star needs much help.

Miller and her pal Keira Knightley have both been reported to have eating contests on the set of their latest movie, the Edge of Love.

The two women boast their appetites, one source says they eat more than the men on set.



One person told tabloids, "Keira was told to beef up for the role and she and Sienna have been having food competitions to see who can eat the most. At the moment they are on a curry diet where they can have curries for lunch and dinner, and eggs Benedict for breakfast."




Sienna Miller says she gets her great body from clever camera angles and makeup. She told Britain’s Closer magazine, "They spray make-up all over your body so you don’t see the stretch marks that we girls all have."



Sienna says she's comfortable with her weight and refuses to go on a diet. She was allegedly "horrified that her breasts shrank to a 32B cup size after she slimmed down for her role as Edie Sedgwick in the movie" and said "I don’t eat salads and I don’t drink skinny coffee. I do run around a lot but I’m not healthy. One day I’ll wake up and my bum will be on the floor!"

September 25, 2007

Britney Spears' Weight Loss Secrets

Is Britney making a come back? If you haven’t heard by now, Ms. Spears is touring southern California with an 11-15 minute show, lip syncing some of her biggest hits. While she desperately needs a stylist, her clothes are revealing her newly slimmed down body.



US weekly reported last week that the mommy of two has lost 12 pounds in the past month. Her trainer reveals that Spears works out extremely hard, two-four days each week at home with him. Her workout often includes lunges, squats, kickboxing and running on the treadmill. The gossip magazine also says that she burns up to 1,500 calories an hour during jazz and hip-hop dance classes.

I find this very hard to believe since running is about 600 calories an hour. How can you burn more calories dancing, which is like stop and go, versus heart pumping cardio for sixty minutes?

As for her diet, she reportedly has switched in her cheetos for sushi, and eats 6 small meals a day like many other celebs. However, we recently saw pictures of the “rehabbed” entertainer going through a fast food drive through.

Her mini-tour has been getting terrible reviews. The only positive comments being made, seriously the ONLY positive comments are that her body looks a million times better than about two months ago. She isn’t a great singer, but she was once a fabulous entertainer. Her shows have been packed with dance routines she apparently stole from her former choreographer, hideous outfits, lip syncing, and poking fun at her own rehab situation (during Toxic in San Diego she apparently made a drug references with her hands and nose when the lyrics say “I need a hit”). Would you pay to see her perform for 15 minutes?

There were also reports that she had liposuction, but I find that hard to believe. I think Britney has finally realized that her comeback is now or never. I personally idolized Spears back in high school and can’t believe how different she seems now. But I do believe that she has the discipline to workout and eat right. I’m not sure if she is mentally stable enough yet to get back to where she once was, but it’s good to know that she is losing weight in a healthy fashion. I also don’t think we’ll see her photographed looking like a skeleton any time soon. That girl loves her southern comfort food too much!

May 4, 2007